


Colder than Heaven Itself

by KesaKo



Category: Phoenix Wright, 逆転裁判 | Gyakuten Saiban | Ace Attorney
Genre: Attempt to plot, Coffenese, First Time, Godot is one smooth seducer, Godot/Mia (because), Humor, Hurt/Comfort, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Implied Phoenix/Miles - of course Miles is in love and I want this to be canon hehe, Light Angst, M/M, Misunderstandings, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Phoenix is clumsy, Phoenix/Iris (at the beginning), Post-Canon Fix-It, Set after Trials and Tribulations, Sexual Identity, Slow Build, There will be coffees, Tragedy/Comedy, and lots of whips with Franziska
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-13
Updated: 2015-08-13
Packaged: 2018-04-14 12:15:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4564326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KesaKo/pseuds/KesaKo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He had returned from Hell, tasting the delicate flavor of loss and sorrow. After eighteen months laying this time at Cerberus' foot, Godot is offered the unexpected opportunity to be released from prison. Miles Edgeworth needs his help to stop the Cadaverinis - Phoenix Wright's life may be on the line. Neither of them have spoken to the other since, but well, Phoenix will often be confused and misunderstand things anyway, so it's starting that way.</p><p>Hell had been white hot, burning his heart with the blessed love he felt for Mia ; the road to escape this place is scattered with loneliness and despair, and the light at the end is weak and cold, unsteady, sore - because of the frost, threatening to shatter their fleshs and their minds broken by their last case.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Colder than Heaven Itself

**Author's Note:**

> I am used to write long and thought-out fanfics - never published - but this is the first time I'm taking a bit of a risk by publishing the first chapter just for fun. It's also the first time I'm writing in English, and as I don't know anyone - yet - in the fandom, it is not beta-ed. But please, if you're interested in meeting a French girl convicted with deep fangirlism, or if you're interested in crushing every grammatical/juridical mistakes that will probably - hopefully not so much - lay in the story, or if you're just interested in making me happy, don't hesitate to contact me ! :D I only bite hot gay fictionnal men anyway !
> 
> I intend this Godot/Phoenix fic to be quite - ok, much - longer than what I saw on AO3, because GOD they are brilliant but you can't get enough when you're a fan !! Do let me know if you ever read this and want to read what next, because otherwise there's a high probability I'm not going to post it and it will be rotting in my computer, unread and untouched - not like naïve Phoenix soon, ha ! (No, poor thing...) :)

 

 _Date : ???_  
_Californian State Prison of the Unites States  
_ _Cell n. 0542_

_  
_

A humourless yet amusing time passed during which he was simply held by iron. By its rusty and bloody taste. Maybe it was his own blood he was tasting. No, he wasn’t making any sense : only his tears bled now, since the accident, and he was pretty much sure he hadn’t spared one of the invisibly crimsoned, salty drop of water for the stones, nor the ceilar, nor his simple bed, nor for his days here - coffeeless, for that matter, except on Sundays morning, may they all be damned : how was a man supposed to feel lethal guilt and repent for his crimes without the bitter-sweet incentive that was coffee ? Maybe he could have shed blood for Mia. But Mia wasn’t here. She visited twice in eighteen months. That was more than he had seen in five years. And so much more than what he could have expected, had the love of his life been a bit less spectacular than what she had been. A channeling medium. During this silent time, the useless, unfounded thought that maybe he shared the same fate as Dahlia Hawthorne had occured to him : he too was forced to watch his failure for eternity each time he longed for Mia and finally saw her - dead, forced to steal another body to see and smile. He would wait for her for eternity, feeling blessed, not cursed when it would briefly happen again, and maybe that was the biggest curse of all, not being aware of his wound being bottomless. Life without Mia felt like eternity.

Thirteen years to go.

Nobody will wait for him when he will come out of here. Life sure had a bitter sense of humour, making him go through comatose once again - or maybe was he just meant to sleep for the rest of his gray days. Nobody would be there for him. Such a shame only weak creatures can take their own life - it doesn’t fit a proper man.

His doomed eyes don’t even see when the door opens, when the light strikes abruptly his features, demanding him to live once again. He only hears the song of the rusty old iron bars opening, footsteps and a familiar voice :

"Thanks pal, I think I can handle it from here. Hey sir ! Long time no see ! … I mean, you can’t see me of course, but we’ve got your toaster googles back at - Is he dead ? Wow, great, you moved ! What I mean is : you’re free. You can go."

He had lazily stirred in a sitting position, but couldn’t find in him the will to get up, to make the effort of believing he could go back to life, its colors, its endless sounds. Was he not a perfect marble sculpture in the dark ? Forever living with and without Mia, free to dream and wander around the world with her.

" _He_ told me to bring coffee. There’s some next door, if you want some."

"You better pray it’s not from Starbucks." He warned with a trembling voice, walking past him.

 

 

 _August, 12, 8:32 pm_  
_Prosecutors’ State Office_  
_Office of Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth_

 

"… I personnally had no idea that your state was so bad before last month, when I saw the reports from the prison." Edgweworth said, standing accross from his seated self. "Wright told me, and I investigated -"

"I find it funny that you still call him “Wright”." He noticed, drinking a blessed sip of this shame of a coffee they had dared serving him.

 _God_ -ot that felt good. As he wouldn’t ever admit this gnat’s pee could suit his delicate tastes for the time being, he found an amusing distraction in seeing Edgeworth do a double-take and glare at him with clever and quick eyes. Godot smirked.

"I don’t know why you would say that", Edgeworth began with caution, "especially since it doesn’t concern your case at all. I’m rather fond of sticking with formalities and _not_ calling him Feenie, if you must know."

Ah, a private joke from the prosecutor. His smile widened. Still, Edgweworth hadn’t cracked under the sudden pressure, and he was rather pleased, if not surprised.

"Wright is the very reason you are in my office right now", he admitted. "I had to bring you here as soon as I could, I apologize for being so rude about it."

"Coming from the man who set me free from prison, I can’t possibly complain."

"I didn’t set you free", he denied, "but we’ll talk about that trivial part later."

"Well, if we’re not talking trivial, I’m going to need more coffee. Hotness of mind can only comes with a burning taste - a burning taste of loss and darkness."

Edgeworth blinked.

"So, no sugar, I take it."

Godot smiled broadly, and after the man had ordered a trail full of coffees, he went on :

"I did rush a bit your release, because I need your help on a case (His serious, angry eyes stopped him from making fun immediatly, and he listened, casually drinking his last sip to hide it). I take it you didn’t hear about the case going on ? You could have, it’s related to the underworld and to one particular convict you’re not without knowing. It’s been six months since it happened. Wright is in danger. He’s been blackmailed a few times."

Something spiked in his chest, just silently. His mind raced, his body, motionless. Trite in danger ? The sudden surge of protectiveness didn’t surprise him one bit. He had learned to aknowledge this part of him embracing the defense attorney along with the Fey family in the people to take care for Mia’s sake. Seeing that he was to keep perfectly silent, Edgeworth explained :

"Of course the police investigated the first time he received a letter, but nothing could give us a hint of who it could be. He realized straight away the identity of the culprits and sent Maya and Pearl as far from here as possible : they’re now safe in the Kurain village."

Six months, Godot reflected, he had not seen the girls - and thus Mia - for six months. They had been sent away to be protected, not for another obscure reason concerning him.

"But Wright decided to stay despite the letters and warnings becoming more and more reccurent. I am convinced at this point that they will strike very soon."

"I still find it odd that you’re requesting my help", he argued while absentmindedly grabbing a mug flying towards him from a trail passing by, "are you so deeply convinced of your friendly feelings for him that you would ask an old and blind, homeless, jobless excuse for a prosecutor for his help ?"

"Please", he snorted with an air of nobility to his raised up nose, "you’re hardly homeless".

Godot barked a laugh. Didn’t add anything else. He couldn’t deny that life was dutifully absurd with him, but a particular sparkle in the eyes of Edgeworth conforted him, as he saw it everywhere he went : his guts, his looks, his very way of speaking - slipping like a hot drink along a demanding throat, smooth and nice - still inspired a gentleman-like respect to men. And friendship, or lust, to ladies.

"What do you want from me, Miles ?" He asked deliberately slowly, crossing a leg above the other.

The prosecutor didn’t blink an eye, and answered :

"I heard that you were one of the best. That is, with me and Franziska. You’ve spent eighteen months where the one I need to be filled on is, and I had rather hoped that you would have learnt something."

"Ah. But the moon can never hope to melt into the black sky to dilute its loneliness among the countless stars."

"… Which means ? No, wait. I know the answer anyway." He sighed. "You almost didn’t speak to anyone."

"True. But do tell me which star you wanted me to befriend."

"Hardly befriend, or you would have ended up dead quicker than Wright. I need to learn as much as possible on Viola Cadaverini wereabouts."

His swallow of coffee went directly down the wrong way when he heard the name. Before he could see it with his googles, he had spat a large amount of it into the air and had gripped his seat with a tense hand.

"What ?"

Edgeworth seemed to take a hidden pleasure in seeing lose his cool, but otherwise looked grave. His eyes had darkened, one of them cut in half by a strand of hair falling in front of his right pupil.

"I need you to take down Bruto Cadaverini and all his organization with our help."

Did he come back straight from the entrance of Hell for that ? Taking down the mafia network that owned a large part of the police and of the judiciary system ? Well, he didn’t have anything to lose anyway. Except the possibility to keep an eye on Mia’s protegees as long as he could. Seemed like doing one required doing both. Of course Trite had brought down the entire mafia on him by accusing the granddaughter of the godfather of the state, Viola Cadaverini, of being the accomplice of a murder and by putting her in jail. The thought didn’t even cross the lawyer’s mind back then. Maybe he had refused to see Mia’s spirit in Trite for longer than he had first thought. Godot laid against the back of the leather seat and noted :

"It is quite a serious presumpion you are making now, Prosecutor. Even more so considering you don’t have any proof to back up your argument, since you didn’t bring anyone to justice yet."

Edgeworth had the courtesy to cover up his outburst with a pinch of shame when he answered :

"Everything is hinting that way, and we all know where the threats come from. They asked for Viola Cadaverini’s verdict to be altered. Wright didn’t back down, and doesn’t seem to overly worry about it either. His first thoughts lately were on his clients and one particular case."

"That’s my kitten boy." He approved with a smile.

Miles Edgeworth didn’t find his sarcastic pride funny, and perfectly ignored him.

"I will need you to proceed as discreetly as possible. You can’t -"

"Don’t give me the long talk, boy. I was drinking alcoholic coffee beverages to celebrate my first victory in court while you were watching me on TV home with mom."

“ _And dad_ ” had almost escaped his lips, but he had plunged them on the hot china just in time. The DL-6 case had been pretty messy. Poor boy. As it is, Edgeworth only threw his condescending glare at him and went on :

"As far as your case is concerned, you understand that you’re free to go. They’re all ridiculously sorry it took so long. I’d say it’s even more absurd given their link with the case and the victim, and given the fact that you only stayed but a year and a half in prison. I’m glad to see you back, he indulged with a shy half-smile, don’t misunderstand me."

"They ?" He asked, frowning on his red googles.

So he hadn’t be temporarly freed to this case, as he had first imagined. Who could possibly… The realisation must have shown in his body, because Edgeworth nodded with mocking eyes :

"Who else ? Of course he had to run rescuing you."

 

 

 _August, 13, 10:15 am_  
_Wright and Co. Law Offices  
_ _Near the lawsuit dropped on the desk_

 

Phoenix Wright hurriedly answered his Steel Warrior-style singing mobile phone while grabbing some papers and putting on his right shoe. It immediatly ended up with Maya’s voice fainting towards the floor and a rain of important documents.

"Nick ! How are you ? Did _youhearabout_ …"

"Oops, sorry Maya." He promptly apologized with a sheepish smile. "You were saying ?"

"Wow, did you fell on something ? A ferret, maybe ?"

"A ferret ? Why would there be a f- N-No, I just dropped the phone. How are you and Pearls ? Is is better at the Kurain Village ?"

"Well… No, not exactly. But we’re fine, don’t worry Nick ! Were you running to some place special to be this speedy-needy ?"

He could exactly picture her playful smile as she spoke, and absently scrubbed the back of his head. Maya always spotted him right away. An embrassed smile broke onto his lips as he answered, blushing a little :

"Well, today is Iris visits day and…"

"Ah ! I just knew it ! You’re never half this clumsy when you’re with us, and that’s saying something."

"Surely I’m not that clumsy." He argued while bending to pick up the keys that just fell on the floor.

He hurried outdoors and climbed up into his car.

"Awfully clumsy. Hey Pearls ! Yeah it’s Nick, but he’s kind of busy right now. Yes, he’s going to see Iris. N-No - Pearls, the phone, don’t throw it we need it to -"

Second crash of the day for mobile phones coming from the Wright and Co. Law Offices budget. A strange noise on the other end while he entered a tunnel, and then :

"Sorry about that. I guess she’s still a bit jealous even she’s her sister. Say hello to Iris for us."

"Thank you, I’ll let you know how it went. I have to hang up now, I should say it’s because I’m driving but it’s only because of a long tunnel. Don’t worry about me, I can always use my fake paper attorney badge in they suspend me and send me to prison."

"Wait Nick ! Speaking of prison -"

And that was pretty much it. Phoenix put his phone away inside his jacket pocket, feeling too nervous and happy to remain frustrated long by the abrupt end of the conversation. He hadn’t seen Iris for three weeks now, and he had grown uneasy these last few days. They weren’t exactly dating. Well, they did meet every week or so for the last eight months, but considering that she didn’t have much visits, it was more accurate to say that Phoenix would be forcing this relationship on her. She was certainly the kind of girl to agree getting on a relationship with him not to hurt him again after what happened. Of course there would be more to it, but that’s why they hadn’t labeled anything yet. Still, he had missed her dearly since he had left. He would never admit it to anyone, even to Maya.

They didn’t meet straight away after the trial. Absolutely not because of Nick’s shock - he certainly had been in first line when it had come to see her again, to know how she was dealing with prison and to speak about the past - but because it took time for her to settle and be allowed visits from non-members of the family. As such, Maya and Pearly went first - the latter finding in Iris a sister she had loved straight away -, and Nick almost a year after it had all started. They had wrote each other letters. Each one of them was carefully folded in the drawer of his desk. Each one of them tender and sweet, full of regrets and of “what if”. The first encounter had then had him very logically sweating bullets, stuttering and blushing at the same time. Iris had smiled, coloring shyly her cheeks in a pretty pink, and all of this - thinking about her, the letters, meeting her and stupidly flirting… It felt as if he were in love again.

It had been disconcertingly easy to forget that she had planned to rob him while her twin sister insisted on killing him with poison.

Duh. Don’t overly think about it Wright.

He entered the gloomy building and filled the papers, chasing away the slight tug of his chest when he immediatly thought about Prosecutor Godot, Diego Armando. As soon as he had been able, way before he had been ready to meet Iris, he had asked to visit him. First he had wanted to go alone, but Maya’s eyes had filled with so much guilt tears. Pearly had bravely insisted that she wanted to see Mr Armando too - the man that had cheered her up when she had been found all alone on an ice island. The three of them had asked to visit him. They had received of clear refusal. Mr Diego Armando apparently didn’t want to meet them… Save for Maya and Pearl Fey. The blow had struck hard and silently. Prosecutor Godot didn’t want to see him. Maya had turned to him with open shock, but he had smiled and hurried them to the parlour. He had waited for a quarter of an hour after Iris’ visit had come to an end, wondering what he had done wrong since their last talk - when they had shared for the first time a cup of coffee, the rich aroma turning to his lips to peace, and a bond between them, or so he had thought. Because technically, he had also at the same time charged Godot with the murder of Misty Fey, Maya and Mia’s mother. This, added to his hatred for the man who had let the woman he loved die, was certainly the reason. He had shyly asked a few times to Maya if Godot ever spoke of wanting to speak with him, but only received sad looks. He had then decided that he didn’t want him to know what he was doing to set him free and Maya never told him neither that she was playing a part too thanks to the ties linking the Fey clan to the government. He would definitely feel embarassed if Godot scorned him for helping him so fervently. And, his determination aside, he wasn’t exactly sure he should be trying to release a murderer. Of course, it very seldom felt that way. They were now waiting for a commutation of the sentence. And that’s why whenever he saw the papers asking him the persons he wished to see, he felt uneasy and hurried to the waiting room and to Iris.

"Iris, how are you ?" He asked with a huge, irrepressible and stupid grin as soon as he was able to be heard.

She had smile sweetly upon seeing him, lightening her delicate features, and had mouthed the word “Feenie!” enthusiastically. They chatted for a while, speaking of the present, of the past, but never of them in the present time, and never something else in the past. Maybe today they had both felt particularly stuck, happy but cornered, loved, unreasonnably so. Blinded. While refusing their sightless former selves. Maybe. That’s maybe why when Iris joined her hands on her laps while refusing to meet his eyes she whispered :

"Feenie… Nick. I’m so grateful for everything you’re doing for me. I don’t have anyone left in the world now save for you, Pearl, Maya and Sister Bikini. Larry too, of course."

He knew what was coming but felt a strong disbelief turning his features into a face, for ever thinking of Larry Butz, of all people.

"But… But I know how you feel… and that’s not right of me… She whined with a fist on her chest, eyes filled with tears. I won’t come out of here before nine years, and I don’t want you to - Please Nick. Don’t come back for me if that means not going on with your life…"

He tried to put sense in her, to assure her that he was glad to speak with her again, he even tried to explain that he was not actively in love with her yet - well, that was only half a lie : he did feel guarded and adult around her now compared to what they had lived six years ago. But in the end, she won the battlefield on which he wasn’t an opponent to begin with. He made her swore to write immediatly if she needed him, but otherwise assure her that he would take his time. They both parted with a heavy heart.

Trailing behind two guards, he wandered mindlessly toward the exit, thinking of his current case…

"Former Prosecutor… Cell number 0542…"

Of Iris, too, obviously.

"Went out yesterday… a communion of his sentence…"

How was she to bear this for nine years ? God, Pearls would be smoking cigars and calling him “gramps Nick” in nine years for all he knew…

"Emptied the entire coffee machine by gulping it straight from the pipe…"

Well, technically this wasn’t a break-up. Technically he still had had only one girlfriend in his life though. It was precisely when he stopped in front of his car that he realized what he had heard and screamed :

" _W-WHAT ?!_ "

 

 

 


End file.
